FinDec Wealth Services Inc. Decreases Stake in Apple Inc. $AAPL

FinDec Wealth Services Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) by 9.9% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 8,172 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock after selling 900 shares during the period. Apple accounts for 1.8% of FinDec Wealth Services Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest position. FinDec Wealth Services Inc.’s holdings in Apple were worth $1,677,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Ryan Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Apple during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC raised its position in Apple by 1,800.0% in the first quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 190 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the period. Elite Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the first quarter worth about $58,000. LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Apple during the fourth quarter worth about $65,000. Finally, HFM Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apple in the first quarter worth about $99,000. 67.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Apple

In other Apple news, SVP Katherine L. Adams sold 47,125 shares of Apple stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.79, for a total value of $12,101,228.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 179,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $46,005,982.82. The trade was a 20.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Kevan Parekh sold 4,199 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $247.39, for a total transaction of $1,038,790.61. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 8,765 shares in the company, valued at $2,168,373.35. This trade represents a 32.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 224,300 shares of company stock valued at $57,586,933 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Apple Price Performance

AAPL opened at $269.77 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.00 trillion, a P/E ratio of 40.94, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a 50-day moving average of $251.53 and a 200-day moving average of $224.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.87. Apple Inc. has a 1-year low of $169.21 and a 1-year high of $277.32.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The iPhone maker reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $102.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $101.65 billion. Apple had a return on equity of 170.91% and a net margin of 24.30%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.64 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Apple Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Apple Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 10th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 10th. Apple’s payout ratio is 13.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on AAPL. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Apple in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Apple in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Argus set a $325.00 target price on shares of Apple and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their price target on shares of Apple from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, HSBC set a $220.00 price objective on shares of Apple and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have issued a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $278.22.

About Apple

Apple Inc designs, manufactures, and markets smartphones, personal computers, tablets, wearables, and accessories worldwide. The company offers iPhone, a line of smartphones; Mac, a line of personal computers; iPad, a line of multi-purpose tablets; and wearables, home, and accessories comprising AirPods, Apple TV, Apple Watch, Beats products, and HomePod.